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Visitors to Thomas the Tank Engine attraction told not to use name The FAT Controller because it’s a ‘slur’ – and call him Sir Topham Hatt instead
- Staff at the Watercress Line attraction told a family not to say ‘The Fat Controller’
- The family were told ‘in no uncertain terms’ that the term was a ‘slur’
- Some said Thomas the Tank Engine was the latest to fall victim to cancel culture
- In 2018, a major revamp of Thomas the Tank Engine saw two male engines replaced with two females in a gender balance revamp
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Thomas the Tank Engine fans have reportedly been banned from saying ‘The Fat Controller’ because it has been labelled as a ‘slur’.
A family day out at the Watercress Line railway in Hampshire took an unusual turn when a staff member requested that they refer to The Fat Controller by his real name, Sir Topham Hatt.
The popular Day Out with Thomas event, where young children can jump on board Thomas the Tank Engine, had only just returned to the Watercress Line last weekend.
But one father told The Sun: ‘We were talking about The Fat Controller when a staff member stepped in. In no uncertain terms we were told no one could use such a slur.’
Meanwhile another visitor to the ten-mile heritage railway said: ‘Staff said he belongs to another era. Common sense has hit the buffers.’
Many flocked to social media in shock. One user said: ‘They are now coming after the Fat Controller from Thomas the Tank Engine apparently it’s a slur’.
Another added: ‘They’re cancelling Thomas the tank engine now?? fat controller was iconic I love him as a kid’.
Thomas the Tank Engine fans were left shocked after being told that they could not use the name The Fat Controller while on a day out at the Watercress Line railway (above)
One family on a day out at the Watercress Line railway were told ‘in no uncertain terms’ that no one could use such a ‘slur’
Social media users were shocked at the news that Thomas the Tank Engine was the latest to experience cancel culture
TalkTV host Jeremy Kyle also weighed in after he referred to The Fat Controller but quickly joked that people cannot call him that anymore.
Just last week, ‘woke’ parents demanded York Dungeon change the name of its Dick Turpin carriage ride to ‘Richard’ because they found it ‘offensive’.
However, parents lost their battle after York Dungeon refused to make the change. Richard ‘Dick’ Turpin was a highwayman and infamous criminal throughout the 18th century before he was executed in York in 1739 for horse theft.
In 2018, an overhaul of Thomas the Tank Engine saw two male engines replaced with female characters.
Henry and Edward moved out of Tidmouth Sheds to make way for Nia, an orange engine from Africa, and Rebecca, a yellow-coloured engine.
They joined Emily, the other female engine, as well as the boys Thomas, Percy James and Gordon.
In 2018, a major revamp of the show took place with two male engines replaced with two female ones, including Nia (pictured) – an orange train from Africa
The story lines were written to meet five of the goals: quality education, gender equality, sustainable cities and communities, responsible consumption and production, and life on land.
Mattel, the US toy giant that owns rights to the much-loved show, said the changes were ‘groundbreaking refresh’ and is based on extensive market research with hundreds of parents and their children.
Birmingham vicar Rev. W. Awdry’s Thomas the Tank Engine stories have been made into a £1billion-a-year industry which are read in more than 120 countries.
After a string of rejections from publishers, the first book appeared in 1945 under the name of The Three Railway Engines.
But after the Reverend’s son took a liking to Thomas and demanded more stories about the tank engine, the now-famous series was born in 1946 – featuring The Fat Controller.
Watercress Line was approached for comment.